Among the Fluff
by JimberlyShipper
Summary: Set during Pillows and Blankets. Troy and Abed are in love, can they find their way back together? Side Jeff/Britta
1. Chapter 1

_**Disclaimer: The characters of Community do not belong to me. This is a Troy/Abed fic, because OMG. Total subtext that is almost blatantly obvious if you ask me. Almost as bad as Howard/Raj on TBBT or Jane/Maura on Rizzoli & Isles. Anyway, it's set during Pillows & Blankets. It has some Jeff/Britta, too. But spoilers for Pillows & Blankets, and can Troy and Abed find their way back to each other? **_

Among the Fluff

By Julia

Troy was sitting blanket fort, not sure how things had escalated to this. He had been annoyed that Abed hadn't wanted to go and make a blanket fort. Troy had thought that Abed was just trying to have things his way. Now they were in the middle of a huge battle. Troy had to admit, he just wanted things to go back to normal and watch tv with his best friend.

Blanketsburg was busy tonight, they were plotting for the next battle. Troy was alone, and then Jeff joined him. Troy was unaware of Jeff working for both sides. He would not have been surprised if he had known. Jeff Winger was a great guy but he was usually in it for himself. This time, he was trying to delay classes. "There's a possible infantry attack from Abed's orders in the morning." Jeff told him, as he sat down next to him.

Troy, who was eating Cheetos and drinking a Yoohoo, just looked at Jeff for a minute. Then he asked, "Do you think we're ready for that?" He knew Jeff would give him the truth, especially if the answer was long winded.

He was not disappointed. Jeff said, "I think we are, you could go and get some men and women ready if you want." Jeff leaned back against some pillows they'd won in a battle against Abed's Pillowtown soldiers. Then he blathered on about the cause for awhile. Jeff thought that Troy and Abed were being equally stupid. He didn't know what was going to have to happen to get them to stop. The study group was divided, too. "You know, Troy, Abed said you could never beat him." Jeff really didn't want them to keep fighting, but he didn't want to go to class.

Troy stuffed another Cheeto in his mouth. "Well, we'll show him." Was all he said. "How is Annie dealing with the nurse thing?" He asked. He was still so angry at Abed, he didn't know why Abed had to hate world records. He wanted to get in the record book. He was also hurt because not only was Abed his best friend, but he loved him. He had thought Abed felt the same way. Maybe he never had. That fact was what was really spurring Troy on.

Jeff shrugged as he thought about Troy's question. He didn't know how to answer it. Annie wasn't really talking to him. He had made her angry when he'd been working both sides. He knew Annie had a crazy thing for him, but Jeff was not interested in her at all. If he was honest with himself, he had feelings for Britta Perry. Jeff would never admit it out loud. Britta was so complicated and far too political. Then he realized that Troy was staring at him. So he said, "I'm sure she's fine. She's mad at me."

Meanwhile, in Pillowtown, Abed was eating cereal and watching tv. He was missing Troy. He didn't like this fight. He just wanted it to go back to normal, and watch tv with Troy. Abed was uncomfortable about a lot of things, and around a lot of people. Troy was someone that he always felt comfortable around. And he could be himself. Abed didn't have a lot of people he that he could be himself with. He was too weird for most people. Abed loved Troy. Abed definitely hadn't really been interested in girls before, and it didn't bother him that if he was in love with Troy it meant he was gay. Troy was so upset, and Abed guessed he could understand why. They did seem to go along with what Abed wanted sometimes. Abed didn't want to seem like he was in control of the friendship. Abed didn't like upsetting Troy, even if he _did _think world records were lame.

Britta walked by with the camera she was taking pictures with. Abed watched her. Britta was not trying to end the war, which was odd. Usually Britta interfered with everything. Jeff thought it was the most annoying thing about her. That's when she sat down next to Abed. "Are you sure you still want to fight with Troy?"

Turning his head to the side as he looked at her, Abed was not sure how to answer that. No one knew about the feelings that Abed had for Troy. He thought Troy might feel the same, and he was sure if he did no one knew that either. "No, I'm not." Abed admitted slowly. "But we're already this far in, and Troy is upset. I want to stop but I will fight as long as Troy does." Abed didn't want to stop. It might be the last thing that they ever did together. Abed didn't want to stop. He didn't want to admit this out loud to Britta though.

She moved her camera out of the way and put her arm around Abed's shoulders. "Abed, you should see if Troy wants to end this crazy pillow fight. You guys are friends."

Shirley had tried to get Abed to do the same thing. Abed appreciated his friends' efforts. "I appreciate your help, Britta, but Troy is angry. He doesn't want to stop." Abed said, his voice was soft.

What Britta said next surprised Abed. What she said was something that Annie might have said, since she lived with them. "Abed, you and Troy are in love with each other, aren't you?" Britta usually didn't get things right on the nose like that.

Abed looked at her with disbelief. He didn't know how to answer that, he wasn't sure he wanted to confirm or deny anything. Turning his head in a completely Abed way, he said slowly, "I cannot confirm or deny that to be true, Britta." Abed was sure she'd barrel on assuming that it was true, it was what Britta did. That was why Jeff found it annoying. It was also why Abed thought Jeff was in love with Britta. Britta and Jeff were similar in a lot of ways.

To his surprise, Britta gave him a knowing look. "Come on, Abed. I've seen the way you guys interact. I know there's love between the two of you." She laughed a little. "You, at least, love Troy." She didn't sound as if she was asking.

This Abed listened to but did not say anything. He just continued to eat his cereal before it got soggy. "So if that is true, what will you do about it?" Britta asked, not taking her eyes off him. She wouldn't look away. She was waiting for his response.

As Abed was working on what he would say to that, his cell phone buzzed. He had a text message from Jeff. He wanted to meet him outside the cafeteria for a meeting in 5 minutes. Abed wasn't sure what to think about this. He supposed he would go, if Jeff was calling for a meeting may he had a good idea for attacking the Blanketsburg troops. Abed wondered if he was going to go. Deciding in 2 seconds that he would, he said, "Britta, I just got a text from Jeff. He wants a summit meeting. I'm going to go. Excuse me."

Britta thought about this for a minute. She knew Jeff was working both sides, she had seen him in Blanketsburg, as well as Pillowtown. She had probably taken photos (albeit bad ones) of him in both places. Maybe he was trying to stop the fight. "Yes, you should go. Maybe if you win you can patch things up with Troy."

Abed wondered if that was something that Jeff wanted to do. He supposed it wasn't a bad idea, if he and Troy made up. Abed just wasn't sure if he should make it that easy. Abed got up, and put down his cereal bowl. He didn't know exactly what would happen, but he was curious to find out.

When he got there to meet Jeff, Troy was there too. Abed let himself look at Troy for a moment before Jeff began speaking. "You guys have let this go on long enough. You were friends once."

Troy didn't dare sneak a glance at Abed, he looked at Jeff. "He said world records are lame." Troy said, still sounding hurt. "We always do what he wants to do." Now is when Troy chanced a look at Abed, who was now looking at Jeff. Troy didn't know what Abed was going to say to that. Troy would like Abed to apologize for what he had said.

Jeff took this in. He was not sure how he was going to make this better. He actually faltered for a second. "Sometimes we have to be the bigger person, Troy." He tried, it didn't matter what Abed had said, world records _were _lame. Jeff just wanted their friendship to be fixed. The war had been going on long enough.

Abed listened to Jeff tell Troy this. It sounded odd coming from Jeff's mouth. Abed was not used to hearing Jeff say things like that. Tilting his head to the side, he mulled this over. Maybe Jeff was trying to get them to be friends again. Abed thought that was a nice thing. Jeff didn't always do nice things. Abed was also not used to fighting with Troy. They usually got along very well. This was new to both of them. Jeff had been rambling on while Abed was thinking, and he seemed to be done. Abed said, "Troy, maybe our friendship is over." He didn't like the thought, but it seemed to be where they were headed.

Saying the words out loud seemed to have an effect that neither of them wanted. Troy looked unsure of what to say. He was incredibly hurt that Abed had said that. He said slowly, "Yeah, I think we should decide that whoever wins should get the apartment."

Now Jeff was at a loss for words. When Abed had agreed, and Troy and Abed both went back to their camps, Jeff was a little dumbfounded. "That was not how I wanted that to go."

Then he was joined by Britta. "Your plan backfired, Jeff." She said, holding up her camera. She had just tried to take a picture of a hallway covered with pillow fluff, but she had actually managed to get a picture of Jeff looking dumbfounded. "Jeff, Troy and Abed are actually in love." She said, as she let the camera hang down against her on the strap.

"Oh, I know that." Jeff said, and looked at her. "Do you think that's new information?" He asked. "I don't think that they've admitted it. What do you expect we do about it?"

To this, Britta did not really have an answer. She shrugged. "I don't know, but I am sure it's helpful in some way. You can use it to get them back together. I'm sure they think nobody knows. I mentioned something to Abed, and he wouldn't talk about it."

Running his hand through his hair, Jeff took that in. Jeff used to be a lawyer. He could use this to their advantage. He could maybe get them to admit it out loud. It would maybe end the pillow fight. He looked at Britta. "Annie is not talking to me now." He told her.

Britta was already privy to this information. Annie had told her she was upset with Jeff. Britta had been dying to tell her that Jeff was not in love with her. Britta was still harboring feelings for Jeff. She didn't think Jeff felt the same for Annie, but Britta wanted to tell her anyway. Britta was insanely jealous, because what if Jeff felt the same way? It was just unacceptable. She didn't want to lose him to that panywaist. She realized she better say something, Jeff was looking at her funny. "Well, why is she not talking to you?" She finally asked.

After mentally wondering if Britta was off her rocker, Jeff said, "She found out I was working for both sides and she got angry. Accused me of just wanting to get out of classes."

Britta gave him a look. She knew that was true, whether Jeff wanted to admit it or not. "Well, isn't that true?" She asked, laughing a little.

Laughing, Jeff elbowed her in the side. "That doesn't mean that I want everyone else to know, Britta." He said, laughing a little more. He always felt so odd around her now. Like, he never knew what to say. He just didn't know if anything he was doing was giving away how he really felt. He didn't want to do that, in case she didn't feel the same way back. In fact, he was sure she didn't. She thought he was a great friend but that was it.

When Jeff elbowed her, Britta had to work at hiding her true feelings. She loved whenever he touched her. Trying to avoid closing her eyes in pleasure, Britta said, "Maybe if you fix this thing with Troy and Abed she'll talk to you again."

Shrugging, Jeff nodded. "That's what I was thinking. I figure if I try to stop what I pushed along she'll stop being mad." Jeff wondered why Annie being mad at him didn't seem to bother Britta. It didn't seem to have any effect on her whatsoever. She wasn't happy, she wasn't upset. Jeff didn't know what to say. Or think. Great, more confusion over Britta.

Britta wanted to kill herself. She was giving advice to Jeff about _Annie_? Had she gone insane? She asked, "So, do you know... Annie has a huge crush on you?" She asked, hoping Annie didn't kill her. Annie hadn't actually told her, either. Britta had deduced on her own.

Making a face, Jeff bumped her with his shoulder. "I know. I don't feel the same way about her. I wish I did. It would probably make things easier. I love someone else." Jeff said, and then he wanted to kick his own ass. He hoped Britta would choose not to ask who it was, he was usually pretty good at lying, but there was something about Britta that made him want to tell the truth. It was a lot annoying.

This Britta took with a grain of salt. This didn't mean it was her. She just nodded. "That makes sense. Annie's too young for you anyway." She was going to say more when Star Burns came up.

"Guys, there's a big battle about to go on in the cafeteria." He waited until they broke apart, and got up to follow him before he moved.

There was a big battle going on. Britta immediately began taking photos, and Jeff stood out of the fray, not sure what to do to stop it. He saw Shirley, hitting pillows on people. She was part of Blanketsburg. Leonard was hitting some residents of Blanketsburg hard. Jeff didn't know where to start. He saw Chang and his band of boys. Jeff surveyed the scene, until the dean came in yelling. "The world records guy called. He's not coming. What a waste of two and a half days!" Then he left the room.

Everyone but the study group drifted away, there was no reason to fight anymore. Except Troy and Abed. They were still trying to fight each other. Jeff saw his chance to make things right and stepped over to them. "Why are you still fighting? You two love each other."

They both kept hitting each other, but Abed cast a glance at Britta, who shrugged. Abed said, "This can't end. It might be the last thing we ever do together." He looked sad as he said it. All Troy did was nod.

Jeff took this. "Alright. Doesn't that speak volumes about how much you love each other? You are willing to stand here and hit each other with pillows for hours. It says a lot to me." He would keep arguing his case till he got the result he wanted. Jeff would do anything for his friends, he was finding.

Troy sighed as he kept hitting his best friend. "We're grownups now. We have real problems." He didn't confirm or deny anything about him and Abed being in love, if that was even what Jeff meant exactly.

Nodding, Jeff said, "You do. But I had those magical friendship hats for you." Jeff had totally thought they were idiotic. "If you let me put them on you, you can just let all of this go."

They both shook their heads. Troy said, "We aren't stupid, Jeff. We know you made those sarcastically." But his voice sounded hopeful.

He couldn't resist laughing a little. "Yeah, I did. And I will roll my eyes sarcastically when I put them on your heads. But you guys don't have to be that way. You can be however you want." He went to put them on their heads.

The other two men laughed. Abed said, "We know you left them in the dean's office, Jeff."

Sighing, Jeff went off to the office. He could have just pretended he did, but he went the extra mile. Troy's was bunched on the floor, and Abed's was a little dusty. He picked them up and headed back to the cafeteria. He put Troy's on him first, and then Abed's on him. Britta accidentally got a great picture of the moment when she was trying to take a picture of the light hitting a plate of waffles.

The rest of the study group filed out. All but Troy and Abed. They stared at each other for a moment. They didn't know what to say. Troy knew what he wanted to say. He just wasn't sure he could. He stared at his feet for a moment, nervous. Finally, he said, "What do you think Jeff meant when he said we love each other?"

This was easy for Abed to answer. Things might change if he answered. But maybe they would change for the better. Abed had not run the possibility of this because he'd never thought it would happen. He wasn't sure what would happen if he chose what the answer actually was. Abed said slowly, "I think he means... we're in love with each other."

Troy was really glad that Abed said it and gave him an opening. Troy ran his hand over his head. "Oh, because I am in love with you. Do you feel the same way?" He asked, finally looking at Abed.

Abed tilted his head, in his Abed way. As if he was thinking about how to answer. He was, but he already knew he could be honest. He finally tilted his head back to normal. "I do." He said in his normal way. "Cool cool cool. So what now?" He asked. He wanted to know what they were going to do about it. Abed liked to know how things were going to work beforehand.

Troy thought about it for a second. He wouldn't mind making out a bit. But he knew Abed might not be ready for that. "Why don't we go home and watch tv? And we can cuddle."

Abed smiled. "Ok. Cool cool cool." Then they left to go home.

Meanwhile, Jeff and Britta were both hanging out at a bar. They'd decided to go and get a drink. Jeff was hoping that he wouldn't get too drunk and start spilling how he felt. It happened to people all the time, it had happened to him and Britta before. This was an incredibly stupid idea. He was an incredibly stupid man. Things could happen. Jeff was sipping his drink and casting glances at Britta without trying to be too obvious.

Britta took a sip of her own drink, then downed it. The pillow fight situation seemed to be behind them, and she was glad about it. She didn't know how she and Jeff had ended up here, but they had. Britta ordered another drink despite her better judgement. She just knew this was going to end badly. It was either going to end up with them fighting or Jeff telling her who he was in love with, since it wasn't Annie. Britta looked at Jeff. "So you did a good job helping Troy and Abed mend their friendship."

Jeff smiled despite himself. He said, "Yeah, I guess I did. I didn't mind doing it actually, but if you tell anyone I said that I'll deny it."

Britta laughed. "Deal. But do you think they... got what you meant when you said they loved each other?" It was an ulterior motive, what she was doing. She figured if she could get him to talk about it, she could admit her feelings.

Jeff wondered what she was getting at. He knew what he had meant when he'd said loved instead of liked. Maybe he needed to get out of here. Britta might have ulterior motives. Jeff was not ready for what being with Britta seriously was going to mean. Yeah, he had had a girlfriend last year, and look how that had ended up. It had been a disaster. He didn't want to mess up his friendship with Britta if he didn't have to. Jeff got up off his bar stool. They'd come separately so he could actually leave if he wanted to. "I'm sorry, Britta. I can't do this. I value you too much as a friend to allow whatever is going to happen here tonight happen."

He started to walk off, despite Britta's shock, and headed out to his car. Jeff was not going to let his friendship with Britta end up in terrible shape. Once he got in, he sat there in disbelief. He wasn't sure what he was doing, but he knew he could have spoken up and possibly gotten Britta. Jeff didn't know if he was mayor of crazy town or not but he almost got up and went back inside. But he stood firm and started his car. Then he put it in reverse and got out of the parking lot. He was possibly going to regret this, but he supposed if it was going to happen with Britta it would anyway. Jeff very secretly was an optimist. He knew it was a very lame thing, which is why no one knew. Jeff drove down the road, wishing he had a different life. He would do anything for his friends, but sometimes he wished he had his old life as a lawyer back. it was so much easier when you didn't care. But as much as it was easier, Jeff didn't actually want to go back to not caring about people. Whether he admitted it to himself or not, that had been a fun time in his life and he was not looking forward to ever going back to it.

When he got inside his apartment, he got out a bottle of tequila and started to drink from it. He didn't think it was a good idea to get rip roaring drunk right now, but he didn't have any other ideas, and it would help him get to sleep. As he was settling in on the couch, bottle in hand, he received a text from Annie. _'Jeff, what you did for Troy and Abed was really great.' _There wasn't any of those cute smilies, but it appeared she wasn't angry anymore.

He stared at the phone, wondering what he was going to say back. He didn't want to give her the wrong idea. Annie was far too young for him. He didn't know what he had done to get her having a crush on him, but it was definitely uncomfortable and it had to stop. He decided to ignore her for now and sipped his tequila. Jeff was going to have to figure out solutions to these problems another day.

_**Author's Note: I hope you liked! This is my first Community fic, so be gentle if you didn't. I have plans for another chapter, with the whole Britta and the carny thing. XD**_


	2. The Vampire and the Carny

Chapter Two: The Vampire and the Carny

It had been a whole week since Jeff had left Britta at the bar. Now they were sitting in their study room in the library, she was looking _really _hot, and Troy and Abed were playing a game today. Jeff had to admit, he wasn't really paying attention. Then the dean came in. He was dressed in a ridiculously horrid train conductor's outfit, he looked like an over grown six year old. Then he mentioned that a carnival was coming. It gave him no interest. Then Britta mentioned that she had an ex-boyfriend with the carnival. The study group immediately began making fun of her because his name was Blade. Jeff was busy wondering how he could stop Britta from sleeping with this guy. Troy and Abed were blathering on about the Blade movie. Jeff wondered if he should tell Britta he loved her. It might just work. She might be shocked enough to not be obsessed with this guy. Although, he was super curious as to why this guy had such a hold on Britta. Then he was wondering who he would have go with him to the carnival to check out Blade.

Annie was obviously out, she had a crazy crush on him and she'd be no help. He didn't want to ask Pierce, Pierce was too weird and he'd want to know why. There was no way Jeff was going to tell him. Troy and Abed were going to snuggle and watch _Blade_ so that meant Shirley. But it was okay, Shirley would understand why he wanted to go.

When everyone was ready to go, Jeff pulled Shirley aside. "So, Shirley, I need a favor. I need you to go check Blade out with me."

The knowing look Shirley gave him did not surprise him. She really did get him. "You want to see what Britta saw in him and see how you measure up." She said, nodding.

Jeff smiled at her gratefully. "Yes. I just want to see what the big deal is. I have to know. I will never get Britta back if I don't find out what the deal is with Blade. Then I can get her back off of him. I really do..." Jeff paused. Was he _really _going to admit that he loved Britta? "I have feelings for Britta. Real ones." He was blushing deeply.

Shirley smiled. "Oooh, that's nice." She said, and Jeff was_ so _glad everyone had left the room, she had a tendency to be loud about it. And there was no way that he was telling anyone else about this until he had Britta. Shirley patted his shoulder. "I'll go with you, Jeffrey. I've always thought you and Britta would be a great couple."

Blushing despite himself, Jeff said, "Great, thanks, Shirley. I am sure I can win you some animals." The carnival was the next night. Jeff knew that Britta was staying at Troy, Abed's and Annie's. That meant she'd be safe and Jeff could find out this guy's attraction. Besides the duck thing, anyway.

The following morning, Troy and Abed were eating breakfast. Troy had a big bowl of cereal, and so did Abed. They were going to watch their Saturday morning cartoons. Then the afternoon they were going to play with these cool Storm Trooper toys Abed had found on Ebay. Annie was with Britta in her room, they were playing cards or something, and Britta's phone was in the fridge. Troy was shoveling Fruit Loops in his mouth, while Abed was putting cartoons on. They had pushed the armchairs closer together so they could snuggle better. Abed had his legs on Troy's lap, and his cereal was rested on his lap. "Troy, do you think we should get pizza for the movie?" He asked.

Troy was wondering if Annie and Britta were going to watch the _Blade _movies with them. Britta had been acting weird since the night before. She had already tried to find her phone twice. Troy was also wondering if Annie had a crush on Jeff. She'd been muttering about him when she'd made the coffee that morning. He almost didn't hear his boyfriend. "What? Oh yeah. We should see if Annie and Britta want to kick in. I'm sure they're going to watch with us."

Nodding, Abed ate some of his Honey Nut Cheerios. "I could go and get some soda and chips, too." Abed had been enjoying being Troy's boyfriend so far. They did all the same things, but there was cuddling and making out now. Abed liked the making out emmensely, and he was wondering when they were going to take it to the next level. He'd been reading up on how gay sex worked on the internet. There had been a _lot_ of information. Abed didn't think they had to be too advanced the first time out, but Abed still wanted to give it a shot. Troy was the first person in his life that he had wanted to try sex with. Abed just didn't know how to bring it up.

Annie came out of the bedroom. Troy and Abed were still in pjs, but Annie was dressed in her signature college schoolgirl getup. She was holding her empty coffee cup. She had no one to talk about Jeff with. She had been testing the waters with her roommates, but she wasn't sure if she should. Abed was going to be all... _Abed _about it, and Troy wouldn't be helpful. Plus, Britta was here. Pouring more coffee, Annie asked, "Hey, guys, I have something I'd like to talk to you about."

"You mean your insanely inappropriate crush on Jeff?" Troy asked, as they kept their eyes on the tv.

Annie blushed despite herself. "You... you think it's... it's not inappropriate." She defended herself.

Abed nodded. "Completely, and he doesn't feel the same, Annie." Abed was an observer of the human condition, and Abed was pretty sure Jeff was still into Britta. He was _sure_ that Jeff would be pissed if he spoke up about it. "You should move on, Annie. Try someone younger."

This made her do her girl squeaky thing they both _hated_. "I'm... I still want to try. I like him a lot." This was an understatement, she was completely in love with him. Annie wasn't even sure why, it must be because he was unavailable to her. Something about Jeff screamed unavailable. It was odd, because Annie didn't usually like to chase unavailable guys, except her crush on Troy. Obviously, that would have been pointless.

Troy shook his head. "Give up, Annie. Jeff thinks you're too young." He had his own suspicions about Jeff, but he hadn't thought too hard about it, it hurt to think too seriously.

Meanwhile, the dean was in his office, working on some paperwork. The carnival was quiet, but some of the workers were having breakfast in the cafeteria. He was trying to find some corners to cut. That's when that crazy air conditioner man showed up in his office. Vice Dean Laybourne. Craig didn't like him. He was scary. The dean looked at him. "Is there something I can... _do_ for you?" He asked, shaking a little.

The other dean still had his crazy beard and long braid, but he'd slimmed down a little. He still wanted Troy Barnes for his school. Troy was talented in air conditioner repair. Viceroy had been mostly behind the pillow fight. He knew Troy would never leave Abed. Viceroy always got what he wanted. He wanted Troy at all costs. "Do you remember that talk we had? You _are_ going to get Troy to join my air conditioning program." There wasn't a question, Craig Pelton would do it if he wanted to keep Greendale open.

Dean Pelton's face turned red. He knew Troy would say no. He had no idea how to get him to agree. He knew where the boys' apartment was. He could go there later. Maybe it was a good chance they'd be watching tv. "I don't... I don't know why you think I can help." He stammered.

That's when Viceroy got closer. Just enough to scare Pelton but not enough to be menacing or threatening. "You're going to do it if you want to keep any money for Greendale. I know how much you care about your school." He taunted.

That made Pelton take in a sharp breath. Then Viceroy left, sure he had gotten what he wanted. Pelton knew he would go to the boys' apartment that night. He just hoped they'd let him in.

A couple of hours later, Jeff was standing in front of his mirror, trying to decide what to wear that night. He wanted to look better than he was sure Blade would look. Jeff was sure Blade was just a normal carny, but there had to be _something_ Britta liked. Jeff was determined to find out what it meant. She could not think he was really that great, could she?

His phone, sitting on his bed, rang. Jeff was fresh from his shower. Reaching down, he checked the caller id. It was Troy. He went to answer it. "What's up, Troy?"

"Jeff, Annie's practically ready to carry your children. You should know." Troy wasn't even sure what had made him tell Jeff. It's not like Jeff liked Annie back. Troy knew he didn't.

Groaning, Jeff replied, "I know. Do... you think I should deal with that right now? I'm in the middle of something."

Troy considered for a moment. He wasn't sure what to say to Jeff about that. "Well, she's been mooning over you all morning. She's almost forgotten to help Britta with her crazy mooning over Blade."

That sinched it for Jeff. "Okay. I'll call her and tell her I know and for her to give it up." He thanked Troy and hung up. Then he dialed Annie's phone.

She answered far too quickly. "Hi, Jeff." She said, sounding all school girl and sickening.

Jeff didn't know what to say at first. Annie was his friend, and he didn't actually _want _to hurt her. It was going to have to happen, no matter how you sliced it. "Annie, there's something I have to talk to you about. It's really important."

When she replied, Jeff could tell she was being very serious. She was not going to be prepared for this. Annie's reply was brief. "Okay, Jeff. Shoot."

Taking a deep breath, Jeff pawed through his closet. "Annie, I know you have a crush on me. I am going to try and save you some hurt. I don't feel the same for you. You need to find someone your own age. And when I say this, Annie, I mean it. I am in love with someone else, and it's not you. I don't want you to think I'm being coy with you or something."

Annie's hopes were completely dashed, but she had already figured that Jeff was off limits. This should not be making her heart feel as if her heart was in tiny pieces on her kitchen floor. She stared at it, as if she could see them. Finally, she said, a bit woodenly, "Okay... thanks for being honest with me. Can... can I know who it is?"

Freezing, Jeff wasn't sure how to answer that. Britta was there, Annie could choose to tell her. Jeff couldn't risk it. Lie or just not tell her. He ended up not telling her. "No way, Annie. Please, I'm going to tell her soon, and I want to do it without a lot of people knowing." This sounded like a very plausible excuse to himself.

The girl on the other end of the phone was quiet. Annie was thinking. She didn't know what to say. She definitely wanted to know. If she could stop this, maybe he would love her. The smart girl inside her knew that she was barking up the wrong tree, but she didn't know that she could help herself. It was the Annie Aderol part of her. She finally had to give in to what Jeff wanted, she knew that he'd never tell her on his own. "Okay. Good... good luck Jeff." Annie felt wrong telling him that, but she couldn't help if she loved him enough to let him go if that's what he wanted.

Jeff could not have been more surprised that she gave up. "Well, thanks, Annie, I appreciate that. You have been a good sport." Before she could agree or disagree, he hung up. Time to get dressed for Blade.

When he and Shirley arrived at the fair later, he wondered if he could do this. He didn't know if he could face how Blade was going to be. He was glad Shirley was here. He would not have been able to do this without her. "You are the best to have come with me, Shirley."

"No, I get it, Jeff. You've got to see if Blade is better than you." She replied, holding her purse tightly to her. She was wanting to ride some of the rides. "Let's go on some of the rides, Jeffrey. I spent my carnival years pregnant."

That was when Jeff spotted the booth Blade was in charge of. His first impression was, oh my God, how could Britta have been attracted to this man? Jeff was definitely better looking, it only sharpened his resolve to find out what was up with this man. "Come on, Shirl." He pulled her along with him. Once he got to the booth, he stared down the man that was in charge. "I'm here to win my girlfriend some animals." He said, plunking down some money.

Shirley was wary. Jeff had this crazy look in his eye. He was looking like he was going to keep going till he gave up. They could be here awhile, Jeff was _really_ stubborn. She hoped she'd end up riding some rides. Shirley didn't want to have come here for nothing. "Jeffrey, I want to ride some rides, too." She said, her tone gentle for now.

He just nodded at her. Jeff was more determined to win right now, not what Shirley was talking about. "So Blade, you... what's a man like you average when it comes to dating?" He asked.

Blade looked stumped by the question. It took him a minute to answer completely. "I guess I get a few dates every six months." He didn't add anything more, and Jeff was very surprised. That couldn't be all.

So, he thought for something else to ask. It had to be something. Jeff plunked some more money down. "So, are you... smart? Did you get great grades in school?"

Shirley watched as Blade thought about how to answer this question. She was thinking he must not be _that_ smart if he had to think about how to answer it. "Look, Jeff, I want to go and ride some rides."

Jeff nodded, and kept his eyes on Blade. "Yeah, baby, after I win you some animals." There was no way he was leaving until Blade had answered his questions.

Meanwhile, the dean had just arrived at the boys' apartment. They let him in, surprised he was even there. But politeness made them let him in. Britta was torn. She wanted to call Blade, but a part of her wanted to call Jeff. Her body was crying out for both of them, but she couldn't tell which one her body wanted more. She knew that neither one was really an option, so it didn't matter in the long run. If she'd had her phone she would have been texting him. Britta could not believe that she would sleep with Blade while she was in love with Jeff. She supposed that maybe she shouldn't be with Jeff. Even though she'd never cheat on him. Britta didn't know what to do andthere was no one to ask. There was no one she could talk to about it. Britta knew if she was honest, she loved Jeff more. Britta had loved him from almost the first time she saw him. Even with his stupid flimsy excuse for a study group. Britta didn't know how to tell him she loved him.

The dean was watching Blade with the boys and Annie, Britta was in Annie's bedroom. While she had turned off the tv earlier, Abed had told Annie to "Subdue your guest" and then she'd gotten locked in the bedroom. Britta didn't mind, she didn't really want to keep hearing the word Blade and that's all they kept saying. All she could really think about was Jeff. And wondering what he was doing right then.

Jeff was discovering that the secret to Blade was. He looked at Shirley. "I have to go talk to Britta." He had to tell her that Blade just didn't care. Maybe Jeff could tell her that he did. "I'll see you later, Shirley. I have to go see Britta."

Tearing out of the fair, he went to go to the boys' and Annie's apartment. He was going to end this back and forth and just tell her how he felt. He loved her and he didn't want to hide it anymore. He just wanted to love her. He went to the apartment. He didn't know what Britta was going to say but he had to tell her. Even if it felt all cheesy like a romantic comedy. Jeff thought that was growth for him, that he was still willing to do this, even with knowing how cheesy it was.

They opened the door for him almost immediately. Annie went into her room, Troy was supposedly sleeping, and the dean was leaving. Jeff didn't know exactly what to say. The words he'd wanted to say about Blade escaped him. As soon as he saw Britta, he just felt love. It was completely lame but he was going to go with it. "Britta, I have something to tell you." He said, when he saw her.

Her face definitely did a hopeful thing, and he rejoyced about this inside for a second. "Yes, Jeff?" She asked, looking at him expectantly.

"Wow. Okay." Jeff was a little blown away by how this felt. How crazy hard was it going to be. Jeff was sure she was going to be. Jeff was sure she was going to shoot him down and he hadn't even started talking yet. "I don't think you should even think about being with Blade anymore. I want to be with you. I know I threw away what we had before, and I know that I walked away at the bar, but I don't want to do that at all anymore." There was a snort coming from Annie's room, and they all glanced towards her room in shock. Then Jeff looked to Britta. "Forget abut Blade. I love you, Britta."

It was crazy that she wanted to give in, right? Britta didn't believe in love. Yet she loved Jeff. This is all she had been wanting to hear, too. That he loved her and wanted her. Britta knew she had to say something. She didn't want to be one of those crazy girlfriends. Britta finally took Jeff's hands. "Jeff, I know it's crazy but I love you too."

Smiling back at her, Jeff actually pulled her into his arms and kissed her, like one of those cheesy movies. He then did something that wasn't at all like one of those cheesy movies. "Come on, Britta, let's go have sex."

Normally, she would have been put off by him being so crude, but she understood. "OK, but let's finish the movie with Troy and Abed first." She told him. That was how they all ended up watching _Blade_. Even Annie came out of her room to watch. Britta settled in Jeff's arms. She thought it was over a long time ago. But what did she know? Apparently life had other plans.

_**Author's note: So I think this might be the last chapter. But if there is another, it will take place during the Law and Order episode. That one's my favorite, seriously. Alright. Thanks for reading! **_


	3. Law and Disorder

Chapter Three: Law and Disorder

A week or so later, Jeff was getting a text from Annie. It told him he was about to be screwed in the biology lab, and he thought it might be a joke. Annie certainly should not be sending him text messages like that. So off he headed for the lab, texting Britta while he did. They sexted all the time. It was what he was doing when he stepped in the lab and found Annie with their professor. Jeff looked at Annie. "What am I doing here?" He asked.

Sighing with exasperation, Annie said, "Someone killed our yam, Jeff, so the text I sent you was technically true."

Professor Kane was looking at Annie with annoyance. "I was watching Mama's Family. It's midnight. You better have a good reason for thinking your yam was murdered."

Jeff hadn't stopped sexting with Britta. "Annie, if someone did this to us we can find out who." Jeff didn't know how long this acting normal thing was going to last. She'd been very standoffish with him since he had started dating Britta. He hoped she kept up the talking to him thing. Jeff knew that Troy and Abed had had a talk with her about if she really loved him, she should just be happy for him. He thought that was definitely a good thought. And definitely true.

Professor Kane looked at her. "If you can prove that, you'll get your A. Otherwise, you're getting just a passing grade. I know you did the work." He looked at Annie as Shirley, Abed, and Troy arrived. "I'm going back to Mama's Family." Then he left.

Shirley went up to Annie, to ask what was going on. "What happened, Annie?" She asked, looking at Jeff, who was still sexting with Britta.

Trying to ignore Jeff and what he was doing, Annie looked at Shirley. "Someone killed our yam. Professor Kane said if we find out who did it we will get our A." She seemed annoyed as well as angry.

That made Shirley smile. "I can help with that. I watch crime shows when I am bored." She turned to Troy and Abed. "You two. I need you to establish a timeline and bring me a suspect. You only have two days before the trail goes cold. So you need to work fast."

The boys went over to look at the yam. They knew they would work this case just fine together. They were so close to sleeping together. Abed was almost ready. Troy looked down at their yam. Chang was spreading police tape all around the room. Troy looked at Abed. "How are we going to work this case?"

Abed was already thinking this was going to be fun. He didn't know of anything that was more fun than doing things with Troy. Abed was already thinking about them doing this like _Law and Order_. Abed didn't answer his boyfriend for a moment, he was thinking. "It looks like a hot potato to me." He said, looking as much like Christopher Meloni as he could. Abed wondered what Troy would say. He knew that Troy was going to have as much fun as Abed was.

Troy arched his eyebrow. "It looks pretty cold to me." He said, already getting into the role of a NYC cop.

Abed didn't break character at all as he looked back at his boyfriend. "Cold, or dead?" He asked, looking back down at the dead yam.

"Survey says..." Troy started, until Abed interrupted.

"You can't pull through to the zinger."

Troy made a face. "Sorry." He said. He looked upset. Then he and Abed went to go get some suits, ties, and coats on. They then went to go find Pierce, he was supposed to have watered the study group's yam the night before. There was an after school hours poker game with the senior citizens students in the cafeteria. They all started scattering when Troy and Abed came in. "Hey, Pierce, can we ask you some questions?"

He looked at them. He gave them a goofy smile. "Sure. I always say you guys should ask me more questions." This did not even earn a response from Troy and Abed.

Sharing a look, they turned back to look at Pierce. "So, did you water our yam last night like you were supposed to?" Abed asked, looking at Pierce with a steely gaze. He didn't really think that Pierce did it but they thought he might have seen something.

Nodding quickly, Pierce looked at them. He was backed up against the window. "Yes. I was there last night and watered the yam."

"Did you see anyone in the lab, acting suspicious?" Troy asked, narrowing his gaze at Pierce.

Shaking his head, Pierce seemed to crumble under their gaze. "I didn't really water it. I fell asleep under a sunbeam."

Abed rolled his eyes. "A likely story." He scoffed, but Troy nodded.

"It's adorable, I used to live with him." Troy said, and then Pierce interrupted them.

"You really shouldn't be talking to me anyway. It's my project too. You should be talking to someone who hates us." When they gave him a funny look, Pierce continued. "Doi, Todd!"

Troy and Abed thanked Pierce, and then left. They were trying to decide where Todd would be. Troy didn't know where to start looking. "Abed, doesn't Todd have a job at the library?" He asked.

Turning to look at Troy, Abed asked something that Troy had not been expecting. "When are we going to sleep together?" He tilted his head in his Abed way and didn't look away from Troy. Abed felt a lot of things for Troy, it was a lot of change. Abed didn't always handle change well. He knew that he didn't want to be without Troy. Abed also knew that he was dying to have sex with Troy.

The other boy looked at Abed. He didn't know the answer to that question. He didn't know how to give Abed an answer that would please him. Troy wanted to sleep with him too. Troy just wasn't sure he was ready yet. It was going to be his first time with another man and that was a lot for him to handle. "Okay, wow." He said, stalling for time.

It didn't seem to faze Abed, who had forgotten about the yam for a minute. "Yeah. Wow. But what is your answer?" Abed asked, looking at Troy. "I would like to know."

"I don't know, Abed. I know I still want to be with you. I know that I want to get there. I know that this is something I don't want to jump into." Troy said. It was more than he usually said. It was going to make his head hurt. "But I don't know when that will happen. Can... can we just see what happens? It's going to be my first time with another man, and it's going to be your first time ever, so..." Troy left off, shrugging.

Abed kept his head tilted. He wasn't sure what to say but he knew that it was a good honest answer. He thought he could live with that. Touching Troy's shoulder, he just nodded and then answered his question about Todd. "Yeah, I think he does work in the library."

Meanwhile, Jeff was sitting in the study room. He was watching Annie. She was all ready to do something but they didn't have anything to do yet. They were waiting on Abed and Troy to bring some results to them. Jeff wasn't sure how to act around Annie now. He knew that people who acted all gross and in love it was hard to be around them. Jeff knew it would all be hard for Annie. Jeff was just trying to not throw it in the girl's face that he was with Britta. He was busy sexting with Britta while they were waiting for word.

Shirley was out there trying to find some things too. Jeff wished that she was here right now because then things would be less awkward. "Are you doing something important?" Jeff finally asked, looking over at Annie.

Nodding briskly, Annie replied, "Yes. Abed texted, he said they think Todd might be our guy. So I am going through his records." She was being standoffish with him again. Jeff hated all this crazy love stuff and how it was making everyone in the group act all weird.

Looking at her, he decided he would ask if she needed help. Jeff didn't want even know where she was, but she was supposed to be helping too. It was her yam, too. After he sent off a text asking Britta where she was, he looked at Annie. "Do you want some help?" All Jeff cared about was winning their case. When he'd been a lawyer that was what he'd tried to do. At all costs, win.

Annie looked at him. Annie had been pissed at him since Jeff and Britta had gotten back together. She was really mad. Annie knew she had no right to be mad. It was her job to be mad. Jeff was not her boyfriend. Annie couldn't help it. It hurt her. As Jeff's phone went off on the table, Annie tried not to show that she was angry. She knew it was Britta. "Just keep texting your girlfriend." Annie finally replied, as she kept going through Todd's records.

Rolling his eyes despite himself, he put his phone down on the table. "Annie, you know that you don't have any right to actually be mad at me, right? I mean, I get why you are but I am not nor will I ever be dating you so I don't know how you _think_ you get to be mad. I was single, and so was Britta. We started dating. You don't have to like it, but if you're my friend you have to be supportive and crap." Jeff said, shaking his head.

Annie opened her laptop, and then slammed her hands on the table. She didn't know how she would get this across. She knew she didn't have a right to be pissed. But she was. More pissed than she had ever been. Annie knew that it was wrong of her to be blaming Jeff for being in love with Britta. "Jeff, I know. I know that I don't have a right to be angry. I know this. But it hurts seeing you with Britta. It hurts seeing you texting her. I wanted that with you and I don't get to have it. I _need_ to be mad so that I can deal with this. Until I get over it." Annie's voice had risen a little. She hated the whole situation.

They were interrupted by Troy and Abed. They were talking about the picture that Todd had shown them on his phone. They had texted it to Britta, and she was going to upload the photo to the computer to see what they could do to it. Jeff ignored Annie. He went to see what they were doing. Mainly because it was Britta and he wanted to see her. Annie stayed in the study room.

Troy, Abed, and Shirley were also gathered around the computer. Jeff walked up behind Shirley. "So what do we know?" He asked, as he shared a dirty smile with Britta. He knew that he was going to have to deal with this Annie thing eventually. Even if it wasn't any of his business. Even if she shouldn't be angry. Jeff knew that he'd have to deal with it. They'd always joked that Jeff and Britta were the mom and dad of the group. Jeff hated when they did that but he loved it at the same time.

Britta was pointing to the screen. "I made the photo old west style." She told him proudly, and Jeff couldn't help but laugh at her. Britta nodded and looked up at all of them. She was very proud of herself.

Shirley was busy looking at the photo. "Zoom in on the photo, Britta. There's a clock in it. We could see what time it says." She said, and Britta pressed a couple of buttons to get in closer.

They all stared at it. It said it was ten after eight, when Todd had been in the room. Abed figured out that the person must have needed a key. Troy and Abed decided they would go see who'd signed out a key. They headed off for the office. Then Jeff was left alone with Annie and Shirley. Shirley came in to help them with what they were doing. She put down her purse and sat down at the table. "So what are we working on?" She asked.

Watching Annie out of the corner of his eye, Jeff told Shirley, "We are looking into Todd's records, to see why he might have hurt our yam." Jeff wondered if Shirley was going to end up feeling as uncomfortable as he was right now. Jeff hated the whole situation. He was ready for it to be over now. He was actually kind of mad at Annie now for making things so different. It didn't have to be.

Meanwhile, Troy and Abed were talking to Fat Neil, and seeing who was the key the night before. Troy was asking questions but he wasn't really listening. He was still thinking about what Abed had asked him. Troy was wondering if he should be more ready than he was. Troy loved Abed. He didn't know anyone that he could be more himself with someone. Troy could be completely himself with Abed without fear or persecution. Troy liked that a lot. He didn't think that Abed disliked it, either. And it had been a long time since Troy had had sex. It might be a good idea to go ahead and do it. Troy just wasn't sure he was ready. He wanted to be, but he wasn't sure he was.

During all of this inner monologue, he found that they were supposed to be talking to Magnitude. They found out the key had been stolen out of his bag in the library. They decided to test the theory. Troy went undercover in the library to see who was going to take his backpack. He sat at a table in the library for a few minutes, then got up to leave so they could see who would take his bag. It was Star Burns. They took him down to the basement to ask him some questions. Troy was doing the bad cop thing. "What were you doing in the biology lab?" He yelled.

Star Burns looked at him. "I don't have to answer anything!" He looked angry and annoyed.

Abed looked at him. "Troy, calm down!" He looked at Star Burns as he was sliding a snapshot of their dead yam towards him. "You'll have to excuse my friend. He's a bad cop. I'm a good cop. You can trust me."

This almost got Star Burns. He protested loudly. "I don't have to tell either one of you anything! You aren't cops."

This was when Shirley announced herself. She tapped on the glass, and Abed and Troy came to talk to her. "He's right. You aren't cops." She reminded them.

Abed shared a look with Troy. "I'd say our hands are tied, but we basically have no hands."

Troy glanced at Star Burns and then looked at Shirley. "But he's our guy, right?" He asked.

This made Shirley pause. She looked at Star Burns. "Well, he ain't innocent. Look, you guys go to the lab, see if they know how our yam met its masher. I'll keep him busy."

Star Burns called out, "You know, I can both see and hear you." This went ignored by all three of them.

At the lab, they learned that it was stepped on after it was dropped. They also learned that they would have gotten an A on the assignment. They went and talked to Jeff and Annie, fill them in on what they knew. They all discussed that Star Burns was going to have to confess because they had no proof that he'd done anything. Abed was upset because they couldn't do anything to him because they weren't cops. Jeff suggested going to Star Burns' locker and finding something to bury him. Annie was opposed to this plan. He said they had to do whatever it took to win.

Troy and Abed got a janitor to open Star Burns' locker by telling him they heard a kitten. When the locker was open, tons of beakers fell out and broke. Star Burns came upon them, Then he took off. Troy and Abed both tried to go with the 'Why do they always run line', and Troy let Abed take it. Then they were off.

_**Author's note: Hope you liked! I know, major cliffhanger! I hope ya'll liked, chapter four will be up soon! **_


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